Not Applicable.
Not Applicable.
1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to the field of garment or shirt body presses, and more particularly to a vacuum control barrier and buck cover system for controlling the vacuum applied to a garment by a mannequin or buck of a garment press.
2. Description of the Related Art
Garment presses, and, more particularly, shirt body presses, have been used in the dry cleaning and laundering field to quickly and effectively press a garment or shirt body. A conventional shirt body press includes at least one mannequin or press buck upon which the shirt is supported, and includes forward and rearward pressing plates for pressing the shirt body therebetween. In order to facilitate the positioning of the shirt, i.e. the dressing of the shirt, on the mannequin or buck prior to pressing, the buck is typically provided with a front surface which is perforated, or otherwise air pervious. The rear surface of the buck is typically air pervious, or is composed of a material that is less pervious to air passage than the front surface. A vacuum is selectively applied to the interior of the buck such that the vacuum communicated through the perforated front surface of the buck draws the fabric of the front of the shirt to the front surface of the buck and holds the fabric tightly in place against the front surface. Thus, as the operator of the shirt body press adjusts the position of the shirt on the press buck, the fabric of the front of the shirt is held in place on the buck by the vacuum.
Further, some shirt body presses have air bags which are positioned at opposite sides of the buck. These air bags are inflated with air to stretch the shirt body so as to remove wrinkles and so as to hold the shirt body in place while the press plates close. Accordingly, during operation of a conventional shirt body press the shirt is dressed or positioned on the buck with the assistance of the vacuum generated at the front surface of the buck. When the shirt has been properly positioned on the buck, with the shirt thereon, it is moved into position between the forward and rearward pressing plates. The air bags are then inflated and the pressing plates moved into contact with the shirt. The vacuum is maintained to hold the front of the shirt so that it does not become distorted while the air bags are inflating. The vacuum is terminated as soon as the pressure plates come into contact with the shirt. Various prior art pressing devices are disclosed in the following patents: U.S. Pat. No. 3,471,067, issued to Stewart on Oct. 7, 1969; U.S. Pat. No. 4,473,961, issued to Frushtick on Oct. 2, 1984; U.S. Pat. No. 5,148,955, issued to Cares on Sep. 22, 1992; U.S. Pat. No. 5,474,216, issued to Harrod, et al., on Dec. 12, 1995; U.S. Pat. No. 5,692,326, issued to Mohan, et al., on Dec. 2, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,732,859, issued to LeBlanc on Mar. 31, 1998; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,237,261 B1, issued to Hickle, et al., on May. 29, 2001.
Whereas the above described shirt body presses are useful in simplifying the pressing of shirts, the dressing operation, whereby the shirt is positioned on the press buck, has remained difficult. In this regard, the operator typically stands facing the front surface of the buck when placing the shirt on the buck. Although the vacuum generated at the front surface of the buck is helpful in holding the fabric of the shirt in place once positioned, the vacuum leaks through the padding and migrates to the rear surface of the buck, making the job of initially positioning the shirt difficult. During the initial positioning of the shirt, the fabric of the shirt back is drawn and held to the rear surface of the buck before it is in the proper position such that the operator is required to reach around the buck to smooth out wrinkles and pull the shirt back into position. Further, the vacuum that leaks through the padding and migrates to the rear buck surface reduces the amount of vacuum that is applied to the front buck surface and thus reduces the vacuum holding power on the front of the shirt. This reduction in vacuum holding power can cause wrinkles to be created when the side air bags are inflated.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a vacuum control barrier and buck cover system for a garment press which makes it easier for the operator to place a garment, such as a shirt, on the press buck of the garment press.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a vacuum control barrier and buck cover system for a garment press which reduces, or eliminates, the vacuum at the rear surface the press buck such that a shirt can be more easily positioned on the press buck of the garment press.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a vacuum control barrier and buck cover system for a garment press which reduces, or eliminates, the vacuum at the rear surface of the press buck such that there is less possibility creating wrinkles to the back of a garment.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a vacuum control barrier and buck cover system for a garment press which is easy and inexpensive to manufacture.
Other objects and advantages will be accomplished by the present invention which provides a vacuum control barrier and buck cover system for controlling the vacuum applied to a garment by a press buck of a garment press. The vacuum control barrier of the present invention is designed to be positioned on the press buck of a garment press, the press buck having front and rear portions, the front portion provided with an air pervious surface through which a vacuum is applied to a garment positioned on the press buck, and the rear portion being generally pervious to air passage. The vacuum control barrier includes a barrier sheet dimensioned to cover at least a substantial portion of the rear, the sides, and the outer portion of the front of the press buck such that the barrier sheet reduces or eliminates the force of the vacuum that leaks and migrates to the rear of the press buck relative to the force applied to the garment through the air pervious surface of the front portion of the buck.
The cover system of the present invention includes a front cover portion for covering a portion of the outer edges of the air pervious surface of the front portion of the press buck, with the substantial central portion of the front cover being omitted such that the vacuum applied to the garment through the air pervious surface of the front portion of the buck is communicated through the omitted central portion of the front cover. The cover system also includes a rear cover portion for covering at least a substantial portion of the rear portion of the press buck, with the rear cover portion being less air pervious than the front cover portion, therefore the vacuum applied to the garment over the rear portion of the press buck is of a lesser force than the vacuum applied to the garment through the front cover portion covering the front portion of the buck. This reduction of vacuum on the rear of the buck will increase the vacuum holding power on the front surface which will further enhance the pressing and finishing process. As will be discussed in detail below, the reduction of the vacuum applied to the garment at the rear portion of the press buck facilitates the proper positioning of a garment on the press buck, and reduces operator time in removing wrinkles from the rear of the garment during the pressing operation.